I would love to see Bargnani traded, but even if that happens the team needs to play like they did last year. I want a slow grind to a finish with a top 10 defensive effort to show for it. That is what I enjoyed most about last year even though we lost a lot of games.

Casey - please just give us 5 games of hard nosed defense in a row. Who gives a damn if we lose, just stop the other team from getting such easy baskets!

I think the focus of the rest of this year should be what I felt the focus of this entire season (and last season) should have been; develop the young players (either to be future Raptors or to drive up trade value), determine which players are going to be part of the long-term core and then use every asset available (ie: players who won't be part of that long-term core & 4 x 2nd round picks: TOR-13, TOR-14, SAC-14, TOR-15) to improve the team with the future in mind.

I don't consider this to be tanking, because it will likely result in the team's 2013 1st round pick being traded to OKC (via Houston), to finalize the Lowry deal. Tanking is typically to improve your standing for the upcoming draft. Plus, by giving more playing time to players like Ross & Davis and less to players like Anderson & Gray & Pietrus, this team could actually wind up being better than they have been! haha

I think the focus of the rest of this year should be what I felt the focus of this entire season (and last season) should have been; develop the young players (either to be future Raptors or to drive up trade value), determine which players are going to be part of the long-term core and then use every asset available (ie: players who won't be part of that long-term core & 4 x 2nd round picks: TOR-13, TOR-14, SAC-14, TOR-15) to improve the team with the future in mind.

I don't consider this to be tanking, because it will likely result in the team's 2013 1st round pick being traded to OKC (via Houston), to finalize the Lowry deal. Tanking is typically to improve your standing for the upcoming draft. Plus, by giving more playing time to players like Ross & Davis and less to players like Anderson & Gray & Pietrus, this team could actually wind up being better than they have been! haha

I would agree with giving the young guys more minutes, but that's not our coaches m.o. Casey loves his vets, and will give his vets more playing time. Since that appears to be inevitable I would prefer for him to go back to the way they played last season. It also seemed to inspire Bargnani more and that alone might net us some wins to help us move down the draft ladder so that OKC gets a crappier pick.

I would agree with giving the young guys more minutes, but that's not our coaches m.o. Casey loves his vets, and will give his vets more playing time. Since that appears to be inevitable I would prefer for him to go back to the way they played last season. It also seemed to inspire Bargnani more and that alone might net us some wins to help us move down the draft ladder so that OKC gets a crappier pick.

Further evidence that BC moved from rebuilding to building to competing for playoffs way too quickly. He might have been better bringing in a coach to replace Triano who was known for being able to develop and get the most out of young players, which would have been a better fit for a properly rebuilding franchise.

I voted for other, but only because I want a combination of Option 3 and 4

I really want Andrea gone for the purpose of committing to the defensive culture. Likewise, I want Jose gone as well but his expiring contract might prove some value. Of course, it probably would be useless anyway because we have BC as the GM.

ďI donít create controversies. Theyíre there long before I open my mouth. I just bring them to your attention.Ē

I accidentally clicked on 1....then was shocked to see i was not the only one

I think Nadrea needs to go and Jose needs to go as well for us to have a realistic chance at developing some consistency. Thank god ED is finally beginning to progress the way I knew he would and I think our team is far more talented than last year. The only problem is, we play Andrea (a 6th or 7th man on a good team) as if he is a primary scorer and can do no wrong.

Some encouraging stats though: The average winning % of teams we have played is .500 which is higher than a lot of teams including the knicks, hawks and Jazz
Also, our margin (between points scored and allowed) is less than 5. what this tells me is that with a couple of bounces here or there, and the schedule evening out, we could very well hit that 39 win mark. That being said, I am not sure if we can make the playoffs this year with that total, but you never know.

Further evidence that BC moved from rebuilding to building to competing for playoffs way too quickly. He might have been better bringing in a coach to replace Triano who was known for being able to develop and get the most out of young players, which would have been a better fit for a properly rebuilding franchise.

Oh yeah, and I don't agree with this. Casey's coaching is not the problem. Speaking from nearly 10 years of experience, as a coach, all you can do is tell your players where to be and try to put them in the right position. The rest is all effort and concentration. Even though some of his rotations have been questionable, I think that there is clearly a lack of consistent focus from the players

our problem I think is between the players. I think that there is beef. Andrea thinks he should be shooting, derozan thinks he should be shooting and so does lowry. There is no chemistry there and I think that needs to be solved.

I voted for other, but only because I want a combination of Option 3 and 4

I really want Andrea gone for the purpose of committing to the defensive culture. Likewise, I want Jose gone as well but his expiring contract might prove some value. Of course, it probably would be useless anyway because we have BC as the GM.

Yeah, 3 and 4 are one in the same for me. I selected 4 on the poll but I don't think that happens without 3.

Oh yeah, and I don't agree with this. Casey's coaching is not the problem. Speaking from nearly 10 years of experience, as a coach, all you can do is tell your players where to be and try to put them in the right position. The rest is all effort and concentration. Even though some of his rotations have been questionable, I think that there is clearly a lack of consistent focus from the players

our problem I think is between the players. I think that there is beef. Andrea thinks he should be shooting, derozan thinks he should be shooting and so does lowry. There is no chemistry there and I think that needs to be solved.

I wasn't blaming the coaching at all. I was just floating the question that if we were/are a team in rebuilding/building mode, wouldn't it have been more beneficial for the long-term to have brought in a coach who was proven to be successful in developing young players? If Casey has a preference for veteran players, that would seem to be a poor idealogical fit with a rebuilding/building team that is all about growing a young core for the future.

I have been putting my focus into the dance pak. I make sure that each tushie does not miss a beat and keep detailed statistics of beats per movement. I am currently in the process of lobbying the raptor organization to install super high definition zoom cameras in their changing rooms, because I suspect filthy things are happening while I am not present.

Try and move Bargs/Calderon/Kleiza/Amir for young prospects - develop young players. Let Flying V and Ross playing at LEAST 25 mins a night. Start Ed and see what you got with him. Can he be a starter? Impact first big off the bench?